The baglama Ο μπαγλαμάς
The baglamas is a tiny bouzouki. It is not longer than 40-60cm. It was the instrument the prisoners preferred because they could easily hide it, since musical instruments and singing were prohibited. The baglamas was often made in secret by the prisoners themselves out of cheap materials found handy in jail. The tuning of the baglamas is an octave higher than the basic tuning of the bouzouki (D-A-Doct.) and is played with a plectrum. The musicologist Phoebus Anoyiannakis maintains that the baglamas is an older instrument than the lute. Its existence can be traced back to Byzantium; it was used in churches, in order to give the tone to the chanters.
